The goal of this project is to define the genetic control mechanisms that regulate renin structure and activity in the submaxillary gland of the mouse, to gain insight into mechanisms by which renin is synthesized, processed and stored and to determine how hormones interact with the genetic machinery to regulate renin activity. Inbred, recombinant inbred, mutant strains of mice will be used to determine the relationship between Rnr, a gene that controls the level of renin in the submaxillary gland, and the renin structural gene. We will investigate the relationship between structural gene(s) for mouse kidney and submaxillary gland renin by translating mRNA from different inbred strains in the Xenopus laevis oocyte system and characterizing products for enzymatic activity and/or physical properties. Additional biochemical and genetic experiments are designed to examine the developmental regulation of submaxillary gland renin and to study the mechanism by which hormones interact to regulate submaxillary gland morphology and renin activity. The study of renin regulation has significance at two levels: 1) understanding the biochemistry and control of the renin system is of clinical importance since the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone axis is involved in the control of blood pressure, and 2) mouse submaxillary gland renin is a promising experimental system for investigating cellular control mechanisms.